Enjoying a relaxing moment on the beach at San Pancho.

FEBRUARY 3 - SAN PANCHO

Now that’s more like it. We got a whole day to ourselves and spent the day at San Pancho. San Pancho, also known as San Fransisco, is a small town between Sayulita's bustling, fast-growing hippie/surfer town and the ultra-low-key Lo De Marcos. People often say that it is what Sayulita was 15 years ago before it became such a ‘hot spot.’ 

Playa Destiladeras used to be the best beach around. After Hurricane Roslyn dumped a load of rocks on the beach, it got knocked down a peg or two, in our estimation. That allowed the second-best beach at San Pancho to grab the top spot. It did not disappoint.

San Pancho is much more than a great beach. The town has some amazing restaurants ranging from very good to high-end. The stores are more tasteful than the endless souvenir and trinket shops in Guayabitos. The hotels are quaint. There are even two hostels. You will also come across a lot more young vagabonds. In fact, unlike the ancient retiree crowd in Bucerias, San Pancho is decades younger.

San Pancho has a vibrant art culture. It has an active community center, a big gymnasium that features dance exercises and other group activities, a huge plaza, and even a polo club and field. San Pancho has a genuine tight-knit community feel to it.

While most hotels are on the quaint side, there are some exclusive rentals. We talked to one guy renting a suite for $1,000 a day with a four-day minimum. San Pancho even has a Buddha statue peacefully contemplating in a courtyard.

Above: We took the Compostela Bus to San Pancho. This is the same bus that goes all the way to Guayabitos.

Below: A series of photos in San Pancho.

The terrific Community Center - part library, part kiddie hangout, coffee shop, art display, plastic recycling, etc.

We have always passed by the Community Center many times, but this time we went inside and were pleasantly surprised by the open friendly atmosphere.

This way to the Polo & Equestrian Club. The Club hosts a Sunday brunch and polo match. It is pricey at 1,400 pesos a person, but it would be something different.

I love a giant palapa (a rooftop open-air thatched-roof room)

The market at the end of the main street where it meets the beach.

The high point of the day was the beach. We rented a couple of chaise lounges under an umbrella for 400 pesos ($21 US). That is up substantially from last year’s 300 pesos. The sun was set to broil, so you just had to pay it. The waves were all over the place today - mostly medium, with a fair number of large rouge waves that hammered us whenever we let our guard down. We spent at least an hour getting tossed around. The water temperature was perfect. The sand bottom was firm. The sun was hot. The wave action made us feel alive. The chaise lounges and umbrella rental is for the day, so we spent the rest of the afternoon lounging, then walking the beach, then lounging, then wading, etc.

This was our 400 peso base camp on the beach. After setting up camp, we swam, walked around the two mile beach, waded, and relaxed. When you rent your chaise lounge it is an all-day commitment.

We were entertained by a few large rogue waves.

Many vendors are roaming the beach, mostly hawking food or trinkets. This vendor sells hair braiding. Eventually, we bought a few biscuits stuffed with tomato, basil, and cheese from a French lady (French Canadian?).

On our walk to the southern end of the beach we came across the spot where we started our deep-sea fishing excursion a couple of weeks ago.

The boat on the right is the boat that we went deep-sea fishing on.

The requisite beach bar.

I love the kid's portable amp and sound system.

Each time we go to San Pancho, we try a different restaurant. There are so many awesome choices that we would never run out. The main street is one mile long and runs from Highway 200, where the bus dropped us off, to the beach. The restaurants near the highway are crude dirt-floor affairs. As you walk closer to the beach, they slowly become more sophisticated. Real floors are added. Fancier tables and chairs are introduced, etc. When you reach the downtown area, signified by the hanging flags, the street-side restaurants morph into very nice establishments. The best restaurants are just before the beach. 

On a side note, the rows of colorful flags strung across the streets are called papel picado, or perforated paper. They are a traditional Mexican craft originally made from tissue paper. Elaborate designs are cut into the little flag-banners. Of course, the strings of papel picado that are used to decorate the streets are plastic. I guess they would be called plástico picado.

By the time you reach the downtown, marked by the flag/banners, the restaurants become quaint and inviting. We try different ones each time we visit San Pancho.

We have run across the guitar player and Cajon drum box player several times around Bucerias. They usually play as a duo. The lady singer is a recent addition. They play primarily at upper-end restaurants. The guitar player, with his odd instrument, is excellent.

This restaurant features wood-grilled meats and veggies. We ate there last year when my sister and brother-in-law came down to visit. The food was spectacular.

La Taza De Cafe is where we ate today.

We ate around noon, so it was brunch. We ordered Mexican scrambled eggs and a plate of grilled fish tacos. Mexican OJ is always freshly squeezed. The coffee was terrific.

Dave and Wanda

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